The hockey season can be a long and winding road, but right now the Flyers have gone off-roading and toward a cliff.
Eleven days ago, the vibes were high following an emotional, high-intensity win against Cutter Gauthier and the Anaheim Ducks. The whole night, Xfinity Mobile Arena was rocking in front of a sellout crowd.
On Saturday, the Flyers were booed out of their own building before they head west to play the Vegas Golden Knights, Utah Mammoth, and Colorado Avalanche — two Stanley Cup contenders and a team in the playoff picture in the Western Conference — on a trip that could send them spiraling over.
The Flyers have now lost six straight, capped off by a dreadful 6-3 loss to a New York Rangers team that confirmed on Friday, with a letter to its fans, that they have officially driven off the cliff and essentially quit on their season.
“We sucked. Plain and simple. We can’t show up,” captain Sean Couturier said. “Down 3-1, 5 minutes in, 10 minutes in, whatever it was. We’ve got to be better.”
Can the Flyers be better? Can they pump the brakes on the slide?
From the outside, six straight losses is a concern, for sure; however, the longest losing streak of the season previously was three games, Dec. 11-15 — all in overtime — so the losses alone are not setting off alarm bells.
What is setting off loud sirens is how they are losing games.
Entering their game on Jan. 8 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Flyers had allowed 2.80 goals on average across the first 41 games of the season. The past six? An eye-popping 5.17.
“Obviously, really frustrated,” defenseman Cam York said postgame, after being on the ice for three goals by the Rangers. “We’ve kind of just been shooting ourselves in the foot, making silly mistakes, I think. It’s correctable stuff, stuff that we haven’t done all year up to this point.”
Creeping back in are the odd-man rushes, the two-on-one goals, the three-on-one goals — the Rangers had both — the turnovers, the bad penalties that plagued them early in the year, and players not stepping up on the opposition.
The structure has broken down as guys are missing reads, attacking players who already have a Flyer on them, and giving time and space to the opposition. They are leaving opponents wide open on the weak side.
It does not make it easy on the goalies when they’re having to dive across the crease to stop pucks — a hallmark of what coach Rick Tocchet’s system is meant to prevent.
Is this who the Flyers really are? Was goalie Dan Vladař, who missed his second straight game on Saturday after being injured in the first period on Wednesday, hiding the Flyers’ flaws with his red-hot start?
“I‘ve been preaching since the start of the year, you cannot give weak side goals up, so you protect the middle and let the goalie have it,” Tocchet said.
“Now what happens is, when you start getting goals side to side, what are the goalies doing? They’re just playing on their heels. … But before, especially when Vladdy was here, he knew, most of the time the puck was going to be there and he was ready for it. He made those stops. I’m just using it as an example.”
There’s no denying that, beyond Vladař, the goaltending has been an issue. Aleksei Kolosov got the start on Saturday and allowed three goals on three shots — the fourth Flyers goalie in team history to finish a game with a .000 save percentage, joining Ron Hextall, Ken Wregget, and Antero Niittymäki. Sam Ersson actually made several big-time stops against the Rangers when left out to dry, but ultimately gave up three goals on 25 shots.
“Tocc always says that it’s hard for anyone to make five, six perfect reads in a game. And when you’re not playing well, and you’re in the D zone, you’re having to make 15 reads, it makes the game a lot harder,” forward Travis Konecny said.
“You guys [the media] see it, when we’re playing good and things are buzzing, we’re getting through the neutral zone, we’re playing good offense, things just kind of happen naturally. You’re not really thinking out there. And then when you have to put your thinking cap on that many times in a game, it’s hard to be perfect. More times than not, there’s going to be a mistake somewhere in there.”
The question is now what? The power play is in a familiar but unwelcome spot, ranked dead last at 14.9% — allowing two short-handed goals. (Um, did Scott Laughton’s goal on Jan. 8 break the Flyers?). The penalty kill jumped ship a while ago and is at 61.9% during the losing streak.
And now they have injury woes with Vladař (undisclosed injury); defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen on injured reserve (upper-body injury) and not expected to head west; Bobby Brink on injured reserve (upper-body injury) but could draw back in on Monday against Vegas; Rodrigo Ābols got hurt during the game on Saturday (lower-body injury); and Tyson Foerster was ruled out for likely the season in mid-December.
Seventeen days ago, Flyers president Keith Jones sat down with The Inquirer and said that “the players will decide” what management will do as the March 6 trade deadline approaches. At the time, “the players have done a really good job of putting themselves in a position where we’re going to look to enhance what they’ve done,” he added.
Where do things stand now? There are 14 games between now and the trade deadline. Will they be sellers? Will they add?
As Jones said, the players will decide, so will they step on the brakes or hit the gas pedal?
Time will tell. That time is now.
The Flyers were embarrassed on Saturday against a Rangers team that waved the white flag on Friday.
Breakaways
The Flyers’ injury bug stung again just 6 minutes, 10 seconds into the game. Ābols appeared to get his right toe stuck in the ice along the boards in the offensive zone. His ankle buckled in the process, and he was unable to skate off the ice without help. He did not return with a lower-body injury, and Tocchet said postgame, “It’s not good.” … The Flyers have four players slated to play at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics and now three are hurt with Ābols (lower-body injury), Vladař (undisclosed) day-to-day, and, Ristolainen was placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury after the game. … Defenseman Hunter McDonald was officially recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League after the game but watched the loss from the press box.
The Flyers begin a three-game swing through what some are calling the new “Death Valley,” beginning Monday with a matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights (8 p.m., NBCSP+).
The Flyers face the New York Rangers on Saturday before embarking on a three-game road trip through what some are calling the new Death Valley.
Whether they will have reinforcements as the team heads west to face the Vegas Golden Knights, Utah Mammoth, and Colorado Avalanche is the big question.
According to Flyers coach Rick Tocchet, who spoke Saturday morning at Xfinity Mobile Arena, Bobby Brink is a “possibility against Vegas.” Brink was placed on injured reserve on Thursday, retroactive to Jan. 6, when he was injured on a blindsided hit by Anaheim Ducks forward Jansen Harkins just 2 minutes, 38 seconds into the first period.
It had seemed earlier in the week that the winger would return, but he was not on the trip for the losses to the Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins, and he has now missed six games. Brink skated Saturday morning and, if he is good to go,they’llappreciate having back his production — 11 goals and 20 points in 41 games — and chemistry with Noah Cates.
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladař is considered day-to-day. It’s uncertain if he’ll travel with the team on their road trip.
Goalie Dan Vladař‘s status for the road trip is a little more up in the air.
“At this point, I’d say day to day,” Tocchet said. “It depends [on] how he feels after therapy. So it’s like, one of those things every 24 hours, you kind of, you get better or not? What percentage? So it’s hard to really pinpoint things exactly.”
Vladař suffered what looked to be a lower-body injury in the first period against the Buffalo Sabres, when he wasn’t sure where a missed shot by Josh Doan went before Rasmus Dahlin scored a power-play goal. The netminder, who is one of Czechia’s three goalies for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics, allowed two goals on five shots in one period of action during the Flyers’ 5-2 loss on Wednesday.
According to a team source on Thursday afternoon, the Flyers may have avoided the worst-case scenario on his injury. While the early findings are positive, they won’t know more for a few days. Whether or not he goes on the trip is to be determined.
“Yes, I think,” Tocchet said before adding, “still got to talk to the doctors on that, because if he’s not going to play in the games [maybe not]. Is there a possibility for the third game? Maybe. That’s what we’ll decide.”
Although the team source also stated that Rasmus Ristolainen’s early findings were also positive and that they may have avoided the worst-case scenario, the defenseman will not make the trip west.
“I don’t think it’s a long-term. Is it a week thing? Maybe,” Tocchet said. “If I say a week and it’s not seven days, you guys (the media) are going to kill me. But it’s definitely a week. It could be eight days, nine days, I don’t know.”
Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen will not travel with the team on their three-game road trip.
Ristolainen is out with an upper-body injury. When and how the injury was sustained is unknown. He was a full participant at morning skate and took power-play reps with the top unit in Buffalo on Wednesday, but then did not skate in the game that night.
It’s another unfortunate setback for the 31-year-old blueliner. He made his season debut on Dec. 16 in Montreal after undergoing surgery on a right triceps tendon rupture in late March. It followed a pair of procedures in 2024, which also repaired a ruptured triceps tendon. Flyers general manager Danny Brière said last April that the injury was similar, although he wouldn’t confirm whether he suffered a torn tendon again.
Losers of five straight, the Flyers are spiraling.
To be clear, it’s not that they’re spiraling because they’ve lost five straight. The issue is how the Flyers have been playing during this stretch.
And have they been facing some adversity regarding injuries? Yes. Across the past five games, defenseman Jamie Drysdale missed three with an upper-body injury; forward Bobby Brink (upper-body) has missed five and is now on injured reserve; defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen is day-to-day with an upper-body injury; and Dan Vladař was injured against the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.
But all teams face adversity. The Flyers just need to play better.
Saturday, the Flyers face a New York Rangers team that is not just spiraling but plummeting. Facing the Rangers is a prime opportunity to get back in the win column, but it won’t happen unless the Flyers correct a bunch of things.
Aside from the power play, which is at 12.5% during the slide, and goaltending — the Flyers went from 2.80 goals-against per game in the first 41 to 5.00 in the past five — needing to, be better, here are five things they need to do to right the ship.
1. Stop taking bad penalties
Is every penalty a bad penalty? No. Is every penalty the correct call by the officials? Absolutely not, and there have been some horrendous calls this season against the Flyers.
But when the penalty kill has been struggling — it went from 80.2% across the first 41 games and is at 61.1% during the five-game losing streak — you have to stay out of the box.
The Flyers have taken 28 penalties during this stretch, which is the most by any team, have been shorthanded 18 times, tied for the second most, and have been shorthanded more than 5 minutes per game. They’ve also allowed the most power-play goals against (seven), three of which came on Thursday in the 6-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
The Flyers left Sidney Crosby all alone to score a power-play goal in Thursday’s 6-3 loss to Pittsburgh.
“Yeah, I think it’s just being smarter, not letting frustration creep in. I think it’s, I don’t know, a lot of away from the puck stuff that’s kind of creeped in recently, and I think that’s due to frustration,” forward Owen Tippett said after Wednesday’s game when the Sabres scored twice on the man advantage.
2. Maintain the diamond on the penalty kill
What’s going wrong on the penalty kill? A lot. But the biggest issue is that it has lost its structure.
“Yeah, just really disappointed, like, I’m pretty disappointed,” said coach Rick Tocchet after the Sabres game. “I’m a PK guy, and the reads that we gave them weren’t good. They’re just unacceptable for me, so we’re going to have to tidy that up.”
Tocchet prefers the diamond PK setup to take away point shots, the player in front of the net, and passes to the bumper. The diamond shape is designed to take away specific passing lanes from the player who is typically set up right in the slot in the 1-3-1 structure typically employed by NHL teams.
Buffalo scored two power-play goals on Wednesday, including this one, where all four of the Flyers’ penalty killers got caught too tight together in front of the net, allowing Rasmus Dahlin to walk in and score.
Of course, that doesn’t mean you should ignore the other guys — see Sidney Crosby’s goal Thursday from the right flank. But the Flyers’ structure has fallen apart, and if you’re going to be a team to take penalties, this needs to be airtight.
Remember the good old days of fans yelling, “Shoot the puck?” It was always kind of annoying and probably didn’t come at the right time, but maybe it’s time to start doing that again because, as Wayne Gretzky and Michael Scott said: “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.”
The Flyers have never poured the shots on in Tocchet’s system. They averaged 26.3 in the 41 games before the losing streak, which had them ranked 25th in the NHL. And they have only put more than 30 shots on goal in a game 11 times.
Flyers center Denver Barkey skates with the puck against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday, January 12, 2026 in Philadelphia.
Across the losing streak, that average has dipped to 23.8, which is the sixth-fewest — and only looks better than it is because of the 33 shots they put on Stuart Skinner on Thursday night, including 17 in the second period.That’s by far the most in a single period during a stretch in which the Flyers did not have more than 23 shots on goal in a game; in 12 of their previous 13 periods, the Flyers hit double digits just once.
The problem is that at five-on-five, they are getting chances but not scoring. Natural Stat Trick has the Flyers tied for 13th in the NHL at shot attempts (205), but with only 86 shots and six goals during the losing streak. The Flyers are also No. 2 in missed shots during that span (92).
“I think there were a few chances tonight that could have changed, maybe the momentum of the game, but at the end of the day, that’s the part of it, you’ve got to score more goals than the other team,” Drysdale said in Buffalo. “So I think we got better [as the night wore on]. We will be better.
4. Follow Owen Tippett’s lead
Tocchet has long talked about Tippett being a guy he can unlock and how, with his size, speed, and scoring ability, he can be a power forward in the NHL. He just hadn’t put it all together — until maybe now.
The winger has been using his size to lay timely hits — he has 10 in the past five games — that create turnovers, and speed and footwork to drive to the net.
During the Flyers’ loss to Tampa Bay on Monday, he used his speed and body to drive down the boards and set up Sean Couturier for a Grade A chance that went off the post.
And in the overtime loss to Toronto, he was the one who turned on the jets and tried a wraparound that just missed before Trevor Zegras thought he scored an insurance goal on the power play.
His speed pushes defenses back, which led to another Grade A scoring chance, this time for Denver Barkey as he streaked to the net against the Leafs.
Owen Tippett has six goals in his last 13 games.
Now, does Tippett miss the net too much still? Yes. But he has 31 shot attempts across the five games with 18 shots on goal. He also has two goals and one assist.
According to Natural Stat Trick, the Flyers have 60 shot attempts to 43 when he is on the ice at five-on-five across the slide. Individually, he leads the team in five-on-five in individual scoring chances (12), shots (14), and individual shot attempts (25).
5. Let the kids play
The Flyers have three kids 22-and-under who bring different elements but have shown they can add to the lineup.
Barkey, 20, was a healthy scratch on Wednesday and bounced back with a two-assist performance against the Penguins. He set up Nick Seeler for a goal and connected with Matvei Michkov on a two-on-one after Couturier made a nice play along the boards to spring them.
Matvei Michkov had a goal and an assist on Thursday. Could he be coming out of his slump?
Despite playing juniors last year, Barkey has shown he has an extremely high hockey IQ and a motor that gets him up and down the ice with efficiency. Did he have two not-so-great games with turnovers leading to goals by the Lightning? Absolutely. But it’s obvious what he can bring, whether teaming up with Tippett or Michkov.
Grebenkin, 22, is a fireplug. He’ll make coverage mistakes and is still uncertain as to when to jump into piles vs. staying back, but he drives to the net, throws the body around, and stands up for his teammates. Considering Tocchet wants his team to go to the net more, he’s heeding the bench boss’s edict — and as noted, he did just that on Tippett’s goal against Buffalo.
And then there’s the polarizing Michkov. The 21-year-old is still learning the North American game, and does appear to be “stuck in mud” at times — watch his skating in the overtime against the Toronto — but his vision and desire for the puck is unmatched.
He scored against a goalie for the first time in 20 games in Buffalo, playing it perfectly by driving to the net on a two-on-one and shooting right off the pass. It’s what the Flyers need to do as a whole, as a lot of their shots are not quick enough, giving the opposition and goalies a chance to stop the play or make the save.
Across the past five games, he has shown that he can provide offense, but he also needs to work on his defensive game. Across all strengths, according to Natural Stat Trick, the Flyers have a 63.99% expected goal share when he is on the ice; Barkey is No. 1 at 81.86%, and Tippett is No. 2 at 67.50%.
And although he’s been on the ice for two goals by the Flyers and six against at even strength — plus the short-handed goal by Laughton — he has the second-highest expected goals for on the Flyers (4.27) behind Zegras 4.99. He even made a nice defensive play on Peyton Krebs in the first period on Wednesday, and has seemingly stopped taking bad penalties
The Flyers need offense — going from 3.02 goals per game in the first 41 to 1.80 the past five — and the Russian has shown he can bring that, whether scoring himself or setting up his teammates.
The Flyers are free fallin’. And not in a fun Tom Petty way, although they may want to leave this world for a while.
Skating on the second night of a back-to-back, the Flyers were handed a 6-3 loss by their Keystone State rivals, the Pittsburgh Penguins. It is the Flyers’ fifth straight loss, in which they have been outscored 25-9. They lost 5-2 to the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday in Western New York.
Yikes.
A lot of the blame falls at the feet of special teams. The power play went 0-for-4 and had 12 shot attempts, with five shots on goal. But it’s the penalty kill that has struggled, and add some extra emphasis when you say struggled.
Between Wednesday and Dec. 31, when they allowed two goals on three chances to the Calgary Flames, the Flyers’ penalty kill was brutal at 59.1%. It ranked second-worst, with nine goals allowed in 22 opportunities across seven games. In the 38 games before that, the Flyers ranked sixth-best (83.1%).
So you’d think when facing the third-best power play in the NHL (27.9%), they’d be more disciplined. Instead, by the 13-minute mark of the game, the Flyers had already taken three penalties and were trailing 2-0 via power-play goals.
The first tally came off the stick of Pittsburgh’s Justin Brazeau after Cam York was called for hooking Rickard Rakell on the hands right after he walked in front and got a shot on goal. Before Brazeau scored, the Flyers actually had two shots on goal during the Penguins’ power play; however, with seven seconds left of their man advantage, Brazeau was left alone in front to tap in the puck past Sam Ersson.
Philly then killed off a high-sticking penalty to Travis Sanheim, taken 3 minutes, 53 seconds into the game. But 12:11 into the first period, Garnet Hathaway was called for tripping Kris Letang behind the play. Hathaway didn’t sit long in the box, as nine seconds in, Bryan Rust scored to make it 2-0.
Sean Couturier won the faceoff, but the Penguins recovered the puck, and Rust eventually got it in the left circle. He curled at the top before sending the puck past Ersson’s glove. It looked like York may have been used as a screen.
Early in the second period, after Jamie Drysdale got a shot on goal, the Penguins got the puck, and Thomas Novak sent a stretch pass up to Evgeni Malkin at the Flyers’ blue line. The future Hockey Hall of Famer sent a pass over to Egor Chinakhov, who got past the defense and scored short side past Ersson to make it 3-0.
According to Natural Stat Trick, although they were outscored 2-1 in the second period, the Flyers dominated in shot attempts 34-19. Sixty-one seconds after Chinakov’s goal, Rodrigo Ābols scored his third of the season. After Carl Grundström got the puck along the boards, he sent it to an open York, and Ābols tipped in the point shot as he cut across the crease to make it 3-1.
It was Ābols’ third goal of the season and eighth point (two goals, six assists) in the past 13 games. The Flyers had one goal on 17 shots in the middle frame.
Flyers goaltender Aleksei Kolosov replaced Sam Ersson in the second period and allowed three goals.
Then came an interesting move: coach Rick Tocchet decided to pull Ersson after the Flyers scored. Aleksei Kolosov, who was recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League on Thursday after Dan Vladař was injured on Wednesday, entered after Ersson allowed three goals on 14 shots.
Kolosov allowed three goals on 16 shots in his first NHL appearance since he started in a 2-1 loss to the Flames on Nov. 2.
He did make two big saves, one on Brazeu from 12 feet out and another on Anthony Mantha’s quick shot from the right circle, to keep it close. But with less than two minutes to go in the second period, Pittsburgh’s Blake Lizotte stole the puck from Travis Konecny deep in the Flyers’ end. Noel Acciari got it and crashed the net, putting two whacks on the puck. It popped up, and Lizotte knocked in the floating puck past Kolosov to make it 4-1 Pittsburgh.
In the third period, Sidney Crosby added yet another power-play goal for the Penguins to extend their lead to 5-1. He was sitting all alone on the right side and got a cross-crease pass from Malkin for his 60th goal and 138th point in 93 games against the Flyers.
Connor Dewar made it a touchdown after getting a cross-crease saucer pass from Novak 77 seconds later.
The Flyers did get two more goals in the final frame.
Nick Seeler made it 6-2 with his second goal of the year and his second in the past seven games. Denver Barkey, who was a healthy scratch on Wednesday for the first time in his short NHL career, responded with a pair of assists, beginning with the setup to Seeler.
Barkey took a touch pass off the skate from Noah Cates and fed the Flyers defenseman above the left circle. Seeler skated in and sent a sharp wrister past the glove of Penguins goalie Stuart Skinner.
Later in the period, Barkey set up Matvei Michkov for his 10th goal of the season. Couturier started the play when he got the puck along the boards and attracted two Penguins. It allowed the Flyers to have some space in the neutral zone, and the captain sent a backhand pass to Barkey, who skated into the Penguins’ end with Michkov and just Parker Wotherspoon back. Barkey sent a perfect pass over to the 21-year-old, and Michkov shot the puck off the pass for his first goal past a goalie since Nov. 30. He had an empty-netter against the Vancouver Canucks on Dec. 22.
Michkov dropped the gloves in the second period when he went after Lizotte for a hard, high hit on Barkey. He earned an extra for roughing on the play, and Crosby scored his goal on the ensuing power play. Michkov also had four shots on goal, with three coming in short succession atop the crease in the second period. … Owen Tippett had a game-high five shots on goal and nine shot attempts. He also had two hits. … Grundström had a team-high seven hits. His season-high of eight was set on Jan. 8 against the Toronto Maple Leafs. … Forward Nic Deslauriers was a healthy scratch with Barkey back in the lineup.
Up next
The good news for the Flyers is that they face a New York Rangers team spiraling on Saturday (1 p.m., NBCSP). New York has also lost five straight, getting outscored 27-10 in the last four since No. 1 goalie Igor Shesterkin went down with a lower-body injury.
At morning skate on Wednesday at KeyBank Center, things were looking up as defenseman Jamie Drysdale was set to make his return to the lineup.
But just a few short hours later, the injury bug resupplied its stinger and stung several times.
Defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen, who was a full participant at morning skate and took power-play reps with the top unit, is now listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He did not dress for warmups.
Then, goalie Dan Vladař suffered what looked to be a lower-body injury in the first period of the Flyers’ 5-2 loss to the Buffalo Sabres before allowing two goals on five shots. Coach Rick Tocchet did not have an update when he spoke postgame, and according to a team source on Thursday, the team is still awaiting test results to determine the extent of the injury.
On the first Sabres goal, it appeared that Vladař moved awkwardly when he wasn’t sure where a missed shot by Josh Doan went. He was slow to get up and was able to reset, but Rasmus Dahlin beat him from the point with Jason Zucker setting a screen on a power play.
Here is the video of potential Dan Vladar injury. When he was pushing to his left after the initial save, it looked like he was laboring a little. Was slow to get up after the goal went in as well. #LetsGoFlyerspic.twitter.com/vrUH40Pfir
Losing Vladař for any amount of time would be a significant blow, especially as the Flyers jockey for playoff position in a tightly-contested Eastern Conference. The Czech goaltender has arguably been the team’s most valuable player this season, posting a 16-7-4 record and a .905 save percentage in 28 starts. Vladař is also set to play at the Olympics for his country after being named to the Czech Republic’s team last week.
According to a team source on Thursday afternoon, the Flyers may have avoided the worst-case scenario on Ristolainen and Vladař’s injuries. While the early findings are positive, they won’t know more for a few days.
So, with the Flyers needing a roster spot for a goalie replacement, on Thursday morning, forward Bobby Brink was placed on injured reserve. It is retroactive to Jan. 6, when Brink was injured on a blindsided hit by Anaheim Ducks forward Jansen Harkins just 2 minutes, 38 seconds into the first period.
Brink has practiced in Philly but was not spotted on the trip to Western New York. He can come off injured reserve at any time, as it is retroactive and has been a minimum of seven days since his injury and time missed.
The Flyers recalled goaltender Aleksei Kolosov from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League on Thursday.
Aleksei Kolosov was recalled from Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League to complete the Flyers’ goalie tandem with Sam Ersson in the interim. In 19 games with the Phantoms, Kolosov is 9-9-1 with a 2.54 goals-against average, .908 save percentage, and two shutouts.
On Dec. 31, he had a 31-save shutout against rival Hershey, and he has won three of his past four starts. The shutout came during a two-game stretch in which he went 2-0-0 with a 0.50 GAA and a .984 save percentage, and was named the AHL’s Player of the Week.
It’s a marked improvement from last season with the Phantoms, when Kolosov had an .884 save percentage in 12 games, and from his first experience in North America, when he posted .885 across two games in 2023-24. Kolosov also struggled mightily at the NHL level last season after making his NHL debut Oct. 27, 2024. His .867 save percentage across 17 games and 13 starts last year ranked dead last among the 71 goalies to make at least 10 starts.
“He is a different player, different personality,” assistant general manager Brent Flahr told The Inquirer in December. “He’s really trying to fit in. He’s very athletic, very competitive, and he’s giving our team a chance to win down there almost every night. He’s a talented kid, so he’s got a chance to be an NHL goalie now. He just skipped a step last year. Now he’s building it back up again here, and we’ll see where it goes.”
The Belarusian has also appeared in two games for the Flyers this season, when Ersson was placed on injured reserve in late October. On Nov. 1, he stopped all seven shots he faced against the Toronto Maple Leafs in relief of Vladař, before stopping 19 of 21 the next night in a 2-1 loss to the Calgary Flames.
The Flyers play at the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night (7 p.m., ESPN), and Ersson will start. He played the final two periods on Wednesday, allowing two goals on eight shots. The Swede, who is sporting a disappointing .855 save percentage on the season, has allowed at least four goals in four of his last five starts, including seven on Saturday against Tampa Bay.
Breakaways
On the same day that Denver Barkey was named the Phantoms’ representative to the 2026 AHL All-Star Classic, the forward will return to the Flyers lineup. Barkey, who was a healthy scratch for the first time in his career on Wednesday, has one goal and three points across 11 games since being called up. He struggled in his last two games, both against the Tampa Bay Lightning, and had the puck stolen by Brayden Point ahead of Nikita Kucherov’s first goal on Saturday and Nick Paul’s goal later in the game. Nic Deslauriers will draw out of the lineup.
And while it was raining and sleeting outside the KeyBank Center in Western New York for most of the game, it was stormy inside for the Flyers, too.
Handed a 5-2 loss by the Buffalo Sabres, extending their losing streak to a season-high four games, the Flyers also lost two key players in the process — although Jamie Drysdale returned after missing three games with an upper-body injury.
Rasmus Ristolainen didn’t even make it onto the ice for warmups. The defenseman was a full participant and was on the point for one of the power-play units during morning skate, but did not dress for the game. He is listed as day-to-day with an upper-body injury.
Goalie Dan Vladař got the start but did not return after the first period with an undisclosed injury. According to the Flyers, he will be re-evaluated after the game. Coach Rick Tocchet did not have an update when he spoke postgame.
On the first Sabres goal in the first period, during a power play, it appeared that Vladař moved awkwardly when he wasn’t sure where a missed shot by Josh Doan went. He was slow to get up and was able to reset, but Rasmus Dahlin beat him from the point with Jason Zucker setting a screen.
It was just the second shot of the game for the Sabres. Buffalo then scored on its fourth shot. Mattias Samuelsson, the son of former Flyers defenseman Kjell Samuelsson, made it 2-0 with a sweeping snap shot from the inside of the right circle. The goal came after Travis Konecny and Trevor Zegras had a two-on-one but lost the puck in the neutral zone to Doan.
“I think right from the start, I think we maybe respected them a bit too much,” forward Owen Tippett said. “Few of those guys, you kind of have to play hard and take their time and space away. I think some penalties crept in that might have ended up hurting us, too. But, yeah, at the end of the day, I think we just need to be ready to play right from the start.”
Vladař allowed two goals on five shots. Sam Ersson entered at the start of the second period and allowed two goals on six shots in the middle frame.
Buffalo’s Jack Quinn made it 3-0 when he was left alone in front as the Flyers’ defense collapsed. Ryan McLeod got the puck behind the net and fed the open Quinn for a quick shot past Ersson.
Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson replaced Dan Vladar in the second period and allowed two goals.
The Sabres’ power play, which entered the game ranked 22nd in the NHL and had one goal in the last 21 opportunities dating back to Dec. 21, got its second on the man advantage off the stick of Dahlin, too.
Dahlin got the puck above the circles, walked down, and sent a wrister past Ersson with Zucker atop the crease again. The Flyers’ penalty kill fell into the box setup, which allowed Dahlin the time and space to skate down the middle to make it 4-1.
“Yeah, just really disappointed, like, I’m pretty disappointed,” said Tocchet. “I’m a PK guy, and the reads that we gave them weren’t good. They’re just unacceptable for me, so we’re going to have to tidy that up.”
The penalty kill went 4-for-6. The Flyers’ power play had chances, too, but only capitalized on one of five opportunities.
Philly got an early power play when Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen wrapped his arms around Christian Dvorak as he tried to corral the puck and do a wraparound. But the Flyers’ power play is struggling, and entered the night 31st in the NHL (15.3%).
On the first power play, they did have two shot attempts, with Zegras’ shot forcing Luokkonen to stop it. A positive was that it looked better than Monday against the Tampa Bay Lightning when it went 0-for-2 with two shot attempts, zero shots on goal, and an icing.
After going 0-for-3, the power play finally cashed in with Zegras scoring — albeit off his skate in the third period. With the Sabres focusing on the other side of the ice, the forward crashed the net with Konecny’s pass going off his skate and past Luukkonen.
The goal, to make it 4-2, was Zegras’ 18th of the year and seventh on the power play. Konecny now has 39 points in 44 games.
In the second period, Tippett got the Flyers on the board to make it 3-1 with a pull-and-shoot.
The forward started the play when he deflected a pass by Dahlin near his own blue line that was intended for Tage Thompson diagonally at the Flyers’ blue line. The puck bounced to Noah Cates, who sent it up to Tippett, and he used Samuelsson as a screen.
Flyers right wing Owen Tippett scored his 15th goal of the season against the Sabres on Wednesday night.
The goal is Tippett’s sixth in the past 12 games. Postgame, he gave Nikita Grebenkin — who was on his line for the first time this season — credit for driving through the defense and creating a bit of a distraction on his goal.
“I think if you have that guy going to the net, it kind of switches things up,” Tippett said. “At that point, you just want to try and create as much as you can and try and impact the game and crawl back. So, yeah, obviously, whenever I have a chance, I’m going to try and shoot. But that one worked out being a good opportunity.”
It’s hard to gauge when things went off the rails, as the Flyers put up shots quickly. And things would have probably gone differently if Luukkonen hadn’t committed highway robbery on Grebenkin 6 minutes, 5 seconds into the game.
Tippett drew the attention of the Sabres’ goalie and sent a backhand pass over to a wide-open Grebenkin at the right post. A left-handed shot, Grebenkin attempted a shot off the pass, but Luukkonen flashed the leather and stole a sure goal.
The Flyers had a six-on-four power play chance with 2:15 left in the game with Ersson pulled, but were unable to score. McLeod added a short-handed empty-net goal.
“I don’t know,” Zegras said when asked what went wrong. “I just think maybe we’ve got to get like, our spark, our mojo back a little bit. We just got to, I guess, reboot our brains a little bit, and know that it’s a hard league, and that you’re going to go through these tough stretches, and that’s part of it.
“And we’re a pretty young team, and I know we have played well up to this point, but we haven’t really accomplished a whole lot. Got to keep the foot on the pedal and just keep going.”
The Flyers had 22 shots on goal and allowed 14. … Noah Juulsen had a shot go off the post with 9:58 left in the third period. … Forward Denver Barkey was a healthy scratch for the first time in his NHL career.
Up next
The Flyers get right back to it on Thursday in Pittsburgh, facing the Penguins (7 p.m., ESPN), who have lost three straight.
BUFFALO ― Jamie Drysdale is back. But Rasmus Ristolainen is out.
Drysdale was activated off injured reserve after morning skate Wednesday and is back in the lineup. He suffered an upper-body injury in the Flyers’ win on Jan. 6 against his former team, the Anaheim Ducks, after absorbing a high hit well away from the puck by forward Ross Johnston.
Without him in the lineup, the Flyers lost three straight, including two in a row to the Tampa Bay Lightning, in which they were outscored by 12-3. Getting the fleet-of-foot defenseman, who is having a breakout year on the defensive side of the puck, back in the lineup is a big lift.
“Oh, man, he has such an impact on our back end. He plays with speed. He helps our offense, so it’ll be good to have him back,” said forward Travis Konecny, who added he is good to go after dealing with his own ailments, including an upper-body injury, a lower-body injury, and a good slash to the leg on Monday.
But now they have to get back on track without Ristolainen, who was not on the ice for warmups before the Flyers faced the Buffalo Sabres at KeyBank Center. The team announced he is day-to-day with an upper-body injury. He was a full participant at morning skate and was on the point for one of the power-play units.
It’s another unfortunate setback for the 31-year-old blueliner. He returned to the Flyers lineup on Dec. 16 in Montreal after missing the start of the season and the end of last season after undergoing surgery on a right triceps tendon rupture in late March. It followed a pair of procedures in 2024, which also repaired a ruptured triceps tendon. Flyers general manager Danny Brière said last April that the injury was similar, although he wouldn’t confirm whether he suffered a torn tendon again.
In 13 games this season, Ristolainen has three assists and a plus-minus of minus-3 while averaging 20 minutes, 59 seconds a game.
Before the announcement, Rick Tocchet was planning on shaking up his defensive pairings because, “I think during the season maybe things get stale [so] you want to move it around stuff,“ he said.
Ristolainen would have been paired alongside Travis Sanheim and Drysdale with his good buddy Cam York. The other pairing would have been Nick Seeler and Emil Andrae. Instead, York and Sanheim remain together, Drysdale is back with Andrae, and Seeler will skate with Noah Juulsen.
Jamie Drysdale (left) and Cam York are close friends and will get a chance Wednesday to be paired together.
Although Bobby Brink was not on the ice for morning skate and is expected to miss his fourth straight game with an upper-body injury, Denver Barkey will be a healthy scratch on Wednesday.
“He just played junior last year, so I think it’s important that he gets a little bit of a break,” Tocchet said. “I told him work out this morning, and go watch the game up top [in the press box]. I think that’s important for young guys to go watch, it slows the game down up top.”
“I think it’s important that even the young guys go up there and just take a look at it. Well, it looks easy up top. It looks a lot slower,” Tocchet said.
“Obviously, on the ice, it’s different. But you can learn from up top. I think it’s important that he does that. I’ll go the next day [and say], ‘What did you see?’ It’s almost like a homework assignment. … He’s a pretty smart kid. … That’s why he was drafted, for his hockey IQ.”
Rick Tocchet thinks rookie Denver Barkey can benefit from a break and watching the game from up in the press box.
Barkey has one goal and three points across 11 games since being called up and recording two assists in his NHL debut on Dec. 20. He has struggled the last two games and had the puck stolen by Brayden Point ahead of Nikita Kucherov’s first goal on Saturday and Nick Paul’s goal later in the game.
Breakaways
Dan Vladař (16-7-4, 907 save percentage) will start in goal. He is 2-1-1 with a .902 save percentage in four career games against Buffalo.
The Flyers have been one of the NHL’s biggest surprises this season with a 22-13-8 record and are seeking a first postseason appearance since 2019-20. With the midway point of the season having just passed, Jackie Spiegel recently caught up with Flyers president Keith Jones to discuss the team’s strong start, timeline for contention, Matvei Michkov’s development, and more.
While Jones says the Flyers are still focused on building something “sustainable,” he did say the players deserve to be rewarded for their strong start and that the team needs to “enhance what they’ve done” as they push for the playoffs.
Jones called Denver Barkey one of the organization’s biggest bright spots in the prospect pool, and also mentioned Porter Martone, Oliver Bonk, Alex Bump, Jack Berglund, and Heikki Ruohonen as others who are making strides.
While Matvei Michkov’s decreased usage and lack of production have been hotly debated, Jones believes this season and the lessons he is learning will be invaluable to his ultimate ceiling in the future.
Note: This interview, which was conducted on Dec. 31, has been edited for brevity.
The Flyers have been one of the NHL’s biggest surprises this season with a 22-13-8 record and are seeking a first postseason appearance since 2019-20. With the midway point of the season having just passed, Jackie Spiegel recently caught up with Flyers president Keith Jones to discuss the team’s strong start, timeline for contention, Matvei Michkov’s development, and more.
Note: This interview, which was conducted on Dec. 31, has been edited for brevity.
Q: Close to the midway point. How would you assess things so far?
A:It’s been a really good, basically, first half of the season for us. Players have advanced, and have kind of fit in and found chemistry, which you figured would take a little bit of time with the number of new faces that we added. The coaching staff has done an excellent job of trying a few different combinations and then figuring out what worked and sticking with it. I think it’s been, from that perspective, a really good beginning to this season.
Q: What have you liked so far about Rick Tocchet as a head coach with the Flyers?
A: A lot. I like the way he communicates with his players. I like the way that he is straightforward, honest, doesn’t allow things to fester, addresses things immediately, and then works really hard to, from a game-to-game basis, improve on things that we may have struggled with in the previous game. His practices or his video [work] with his assistant coaches are very focused on correcting and encouraging, and I think that’s really important, especially with a young team.
Q: When someone is writing a TV script for a series, they sometimes write the ending in advance. Outside of winning the Stanley Cup, what does the end goal look like?
A: The only plan would be to create something that’s sustainable. And there are all kinds of variables, with any professional sport; injuries play a major part. So you can plan all you want and have things that just kind of change those plans, but overall, our goal is to become a playoff team that is a sustainable one. Not just a one-and-done.
So you build that through the foundation of your team, and I’m really pleased with what Danny [Brière] has done, along with Brent Flahr, in starting to really build up our prospect pool. We’re starting to see a couple of those guys arrive, and others getting closer to arriving. And it’s always good when you can have players develop together, build those relationships that can last them a decade or more, playing in the same organization, and that’s what we envision.
Keith Jones believes this season of learning will be good for Matvei Michkov in the long run.
Q: So you prefer to hold on to the assets right now?
A: Yes. In general, we’re not going to mortgage the future in order to have one year and say, ‘Oh, we figured this out. We’re a playoff team.’ So that’s still something that I know Danny’s very focused on and [governor Dan Hilferty] and I will encourage him to stay on that path.
Q: Is there anyone in the prospect pool who stands out to you?
A: I would have liked to tell you it was Denver Barkey, but he’s already arrived on the scene. We’re obviously very happy with the way that he’s progressed. And Oliver Bonk has started to get into form now with the American League team in Lehigh, and it’s been fun to see that team have some success as well.
Alex Bump continues to push and develop … And then we have Jack Berglund, watching him perform extremely well, which we expected at the World Junior tournament. … [With] his size, he has the ability to play in front of the opposition’s net, so he’s very good on the power play in that regard. So, as you build a team, you’re looking for pieces that can take over roles that you feel are necessary in order for you to advance. And he’s one of those guys.
Porter Martone, obviously, is very similar in that regard. He’s an outstanding playmaker for a player of his size, great set of hands. Another leadership type personality. … Heikki Ruohonen is doing an outstanding job for Finland, learning his way at Harvard, which is awesome.
Keith Jones believes Jack Berglund can be a big part of the Flyers’ future.
Q: Matvei Michkov is always a hot topic. How would you evaluate his season thus far?
A: I think it’s going to be a very important year in his career. I think that there’s going to be a lot of development. I think he’s doing a great job of working on the things that he’s being asked to work on. I love his level of compete. I love his ability to stay in there, stay in the fight, and I’m really pleased with the way he’s started to pick things up lately.
His attitude’s been outstanding, and I think when he looks back on his career in 15 years, he’s going to be pretty happy about some of the things that he went through this year in order to get to where he needs to go.
Q: The free agency market is so different today, with so many players already locked up. And you’ve previously discussed the need to upgrade at center. Is it more via trades now?
A: Yeah, there’s a lot that goes into it. You can see what Danny did this offseason, really calculated, smart additions to the team. And then you get to know the players even better when they’re under your watch. So a lot that has to do with internal growth and then also having the ability, whether it’s cap space, whether it’s prospects, whether it’s draft choices, to jump and go after something that’s really enticing. So we’re always looking.
Q: Can you just take us quickly through the Trevor Zegras trade and how you think his season is going thus far?
A: He’s done a great job. And it’s really proof of Danny’s willingness to wait for the right time, and he was really patient on this one with Anaheim. It’s been well documented that it was a long process. Trevor kind of fit what we were looking for, and he has been all that and more with what he’s done for us. So I give Danny a lot of credit on that one as well as he waited for the right time to find the right deal that worked for both teams at that time, and we’ve been able to really see the benefits of that in our lineup.
The Flyers have been one of the NHL’s biggest surprises this season with a 22-13-8 record and are seeking a first postseason appearance since 2019-20. With the midway point of the season having just passed, Jackie Spiegel recently caught up with Flyers president Keith Jones to discuss the team’s strong start, timeline for contention, Matvei Michkov’s development, and more.
Note: This interview, which was conducted on Dec. 31, has been edited for brevity.
Q: Close to the midway point. How would you assess things so far?
A:It’s been a really good, basically, first half of the season for us. Players have advanced, and have kind of fit in and found chemistry, which you figured would take a little bit of time with the number of new faces that we added. The coaching staff has done an excellent job of kind of trying a few different combinations and then figuring out what worked and sticking with it. I think it’s been, from that perspective, a really good beginning to this season.
Q: What have you liked so far about Rick Tocchet as a head coach with the Flyers?
A: A lot. I like the way he communicates with his players. I like the way that he is straightforward, honest, doesn’t allow things to fester, addresses things immediately, and then works really hard to, from a game-to-game basis, improve on things that we may have struggled with in the previous game. His practices or his video [work] with his assistant coaches are very focused on correcting and encouraging, and I think that’s really important, especially with a young team.
Q: You talk about staying in the moment, but you are sitting in a playoff spot. Are you still looking at things through the glass, that this is still a rebuild?
A: I think we’ve been clear that the players will decide. So obviously, it’s a very important stretch over the next six to eight weeks of play. And the players have done a really good job of putting themselves in a position where we’re going to look to enhance what they’ve done. Previously, that was not the approach. It’s really important that we reward our players for playing so hard for one another and for us.
Keith Jones and Danny Brière say that the team’s rebuild and no upward trajectory has been a collaborative effort.
Q: Two years ago, management had a similar statement about the players deciding the approach. But then Sean Walker was traded, and things kind of fell apart. Do you use that as a warning now?
A: I think it’s just a different time for us now in our development. So I think it’s a combination of things. I think looking back on what we did there was the right thing to do, and that’s why we did it. Same as last year. But this year feels different. And we’re a couple more years into what we’re trying to eventually accomplish. So it’s just about being there for one another to remind each other where we’re at in this process, and having the support of [governor] Dan Hilferty and [Comcast CEO] Brian Roberts on top of that, really makes it a job that we want to get right.
Q: When someone is writing a TV script for a series, they sometimes write the ending in advance Beyond winning a Stanley Cup, what’s the end goal here look like?
A: The only plan would be to create something that’s sustainable. And there are all kinds of variables, with any professional sport; injuries play a major part. So you can plan all you want and have things that just kind of change those plans, but overall, our goal is to become a playoff team that is a sustainable one. Not just a one-and-done.
So you build that through the foundation of your team, and I’m really pleased with what Danny [Brière] has done, along with Brent Flahr, in starting to really build up our prospect pool. We’re starting to see a couple of those guys arrive, and others getting closer to arriving. And it’s always good when you can have players develop together, build those relationships that can last them a decade or more, playing in the same organization, and that’s what we envision.
Q: Do you look at things from the perspective that the first step is playoffs, and then being a sustainable playoff team, and then, after all that, building a Stanley Cup contender? Or does it all happen at once?
A: If you’re a consistent playoff team, you’re a contender in my eyes. There are always tweaks that can take place when you’re in that position. You’ll see teams that are there right now; they’ll trade some of their draft equity and younger players in order to really enhance their opportunity of winning. So eventually we’ll get to that place. We’re not there right now, but I look forward to when we are there.
Q: So you prefer to hold on to the assets right now.
A: Yes. In general. We’re not going to mortgage the future in order to have one year and say, ‘Oh, we figured this out. We’re a playoff team.’ So that’s still something that I know Danny’s very focused on and [Hilferty] and I will encourage him to stay on that path.
Could St. Louis Blues center Robert Thomas be the type of player the Flyers cash in some of their future chips for?
Q: In working with Brière, how much is it his vision or is it a team vision with you, Hilferty, and him?
A: Well, he’s the general manager. When it comes to players and acquisitions, that’s Danny’s job. My job is to help him with that, enhance that, give him the resources that he needs to make that happen. But Danny’s a general manager, and he’s a really good one.
Q: Is there anyone in the prospect pool who stands out to you?
A: Yeah, I would have liked to tell you it was Denver Barkey, but he’s already arrived on the scene. We’re obviously very happy with the way that he’s progressed. And Oliver Bonk has started to get into form now with the American League team in Lehigh, and it’s been fun to see that team have some success as well.
Alex Bump continues to push and develop … And then we have Jack Berglund, [we’ve been] watching him perform extremely well, which we expected at the World Junior tournament. He’s the captain of Team Sweden, and he’s producing at a high rate. That’s really exciting for us. With his size, he has the ability to play in front of the opposition’s net, so he’s very good on the power play in that regard. So, as you build a team, you’re looking for pieces that can take over roles that you feel are necessary in order for you to advance. And he’s one of those guys.
Porter Martone, obviously, is very similar in that regard. He’s an outstanding playmaker for a player of his size, great set of hands. Another leadership type personality. He is the captain of the Canadian team. It’s a great honor for him, and we’re thrilled about that.
Just like Denver Barkey, he was the captain of the London Knights that won the Memorial Cup. Oliver Bonk was an assistant captain. These are the type of players that we want in our organization. That’s a handful of them. Heikki Ruohonen is doing an outstanding job for Finland, learning his way at Harvard, which is awesome.
Q: Max Westergård has also looked impressive at World Juniors. What have you seen from him?
A: Yeah, he can fly. Brent Flahr shines in the fifth round. He’s had some great fifth-round picks.
Q: Speaking of the fifth round, let’s talk Alex Bump. Why wasn’t he the one to get the call-up recently?
A: He just needs more seasoning, that’s all. There are just little parts of the game that he’s going to figure out, and it’s much easier to figure out down there before you come up here. He’s doing everything we’re asking him to do. He continues to improve. He’s done some amazing things offensively, which we know he can do, and he’s not far off. But he’s an exciting prospect for us.
He’s showing great patience as well. He demonstrated that last year at the end of his college season, not burning a year on his entry-level contract and electing to go down and play in the American Hockey League. He’s sharp. He gets it. And he’s going to be rewarded for his patience, and we will be for ours as well.
Rookie Alex Bump, who is second on the Lehigh Valley Phantoms with 20 points in 28 games, could be close to earning an NHL debut.
Q: How do you balance development then? Using Alex Bump as an example. He’s building his game, and maybe he is finally ready to make the next step, but there’s no room. How do you balance that?
A: You want the player to force you to make room, so that’s affecting his game in the minors to the point where you can’t keep them down there anymore. So they’ll let you know, just like our team up here lets us know where they’re at. Just by observing and watching, and paying attention, the players will tell you when it’s time to come up.
Q: Matvei Michkov is always a hot topic. How would you evaluate his season thus far?
A: I think it’s going to be a very important year in his career. I think that there’s going to be a lot of development. I think he’s doing a great job of working on the things that he’s being asked to work on. I love his level of compete. I love his ability to stay in there, stay in the fight, and I’m really pleased with the way he started to pick things up lately.
His attitude’s been outstanding, and I think when he looks back on his career in 15 years, he’s going to be pretty happy about some of the things that he went through this year in order to get to where he needs to go.
Q: How would you gauge your defense now with Rasmus Ristolainen back?
A: Solid’s a good word. Underrated is probably another good word too. There’s a really good mix of intelligence and athleticism, size. I like the balance that’s there.
And I like having the option of Noah Juulsen there as well; I like that he brings physicality, has a tremendous attitude, and doesn’t change whether he’s in the lineup or not. He’s a really good team guy, and those are important parts of the puzzle, too, because there are not enough chairs when the music stops on a nightly basis. So you need players who are not so much accepting of that, but are willing to do whatever it takes to get back in the lineup.
Q: Are there any areas you want to improve on with the roster?
A: As it jumps out to me right now, there’s nothing immediately. We’re always looking to get better. If something’s there, we’re going to do it to get better.
Q: The free agency market is so different today, with so many players already locked up. And you’ve previously discussed the need to upgrade at center. Is it more via trades now?
A: Yeah, there’s a lot that goes into it. You can see what Danny did this offseason, really calculated, smart additions to the team. And then you get to know the players even better when they’re under your watch. So a lot that has to do with internal growth and then also having the ability, whether it’s cap space, whether it’s prospects, whether it’s draft choices, to jump and go after something that’s really enticing. So we’re always looking.
Q: How do you handle the salary cap rising? Does it change things?
A: We love it. We think it’s great. I wish it would go up another 50 million. But we’re lucky, because we have great ownership, that’s the one huge advantage that we have. So we welcome it.
Flyers forward Trevor Zegras has been a revelation in his first season with the team.
Q: You were the team’s president when Travis Sanheim almost got traded to the St Louis Blues. He was just named to Hockey Canada’s roster for the Olympics. What’s it been like watching his development and growth, and looking back, are you happy you didn’t make that trade?
A: It’s been awesome. The only reason you would ever make a trade like that is because you’re getting a boatload back, and depending on where you’re at in your evolution, those trades sometimes do happen. But are we surprised that Travis is doing the things that he’s doing? No. So we’re really pleased for him. He’s obviously a huge minute-muncher for us on the back end. It’s a joy to watch him skate and come barreling up the ice. He’s just a super good kid, and we’re all really proud of him.
Q: Brière seems to be finding diamonds in the rough. For example, there was Walker, Ryan Poehling, and now Carl Grundström. Can you explain what Danny Brière is doing?
A: He’s very patient and methodical, thoughtful, and there are 1,000 phone calls a day that he’s making. So it’s from a relentless work ethic and a really high level of intelligence in the hockey world. Yeah, not surprised that he’s doing as well as he is.
Q: Can you just take us quickly through the Trevor Zegras trade and how you think his season is going thus far?
A: He’s done a great job. And it’s really proof of Danny’s willingness to wait for the right time, and he was really patient on this one with Anaheim. It’s been well documented that it was a long process. Trevor kind of fit what we were looking for, and he has been all that and more with what he’s done for us. So I give Danny a lot of credit on that one as well as he waited for the right time to find the right deal that worked for both teams at that time, and we’ve been able to really see the benefits of that in our lineup.
Q: Can you just expand on what you mean by he fit what we were looking for?
A: You’re always looking for high skill level, talented players, and at the time, he was a distressed asset. So that’s what you have to do. You have to be thoughtful and a little bit lucky, and provide an environment where the player can shine. Our players help in that regard, too. So it’s a full organizational effort, starting at the top.
Q: What would be your message to the fans right now?
A: First of all, thank you. I see our fans all the time, and I appreciate them supporting us. I think that we’re trying to get it right for them. We’ve [Danny and I] played in front of them, in playoff positions, and we want our guys to experience that as well because I know they’re just terrific hockey fans that can really bring you to another level when you play in front of a packed house, and that’s what we’re working towards.
I thank them for continuing to come out to games, follow the team, and I just would let them know that, which we do often when we see them, we’re going to do everything we can to try to get this right.
Well, after two straight sobering losses to perennial powerhouse Tampa Bay, in which the Flyers were outscored by 12-3 at Xfinity Mobile Arena, they surely learned a few tough ones.
Here are three lessons from Monday’s 5-1 loss to the Lightning that the Flyers learned and need to carry with them as they move through a gauntlet before February’s Olympic break.
As the old saying goes, “you take it one shift at a time.” But, when you read between the lines, it’s really saying that yes, while you take it one shift at a time, you also do it by playing consistently.
Does that mean they have to be perfect every single second? No. And the Flyers have their lapses. But, unlike Stanley Cup contenders who can get bailed out by their defense or offense, the Flyers aren’t there yet. They have great stretches, but as seen in even some of their wins, when they allow teams to creep back in, they need to be on their toes for a full 60 minutes.
“These are the games that are important to us to see consistency-wise, hey, we need to play the right way,” defenseman Nick Seeler said. “We need to reload when it’s there. We have to help our D out. We have to block shots when it’s there.
“We have to do the little things to be successful in this league. It’s important. I think we’ve done a good job this year and grown a lot, but it’s that consistency piece that we can continue to do better at.
“We still believe in ourselves. These two games don’t change that. But we’ve just got to learn from a couple of games like that and be better from it, mature a bit as a group, and we’ll get on the other side of this.”
2. Cut down on turnovers
The record books will say the Flyers had 19 giveaways on Monday night. This comes after 14 on Saturday. In that game, at least four goals can be credited to giveaways. On Monday, Matvei Michkov turned the puck over twice in the offensive zone on one shift — although the official stats say he had just one giveaway in the game — and Trevor Zegras had the puck taken away before Jake Guentzel scored.
It’s costing them games.
“We’ve got some guys giving too many turnovers, especially some of our high-end guys, too many turnovers,” Tocchet said. “Because if you’re going to turn them over, if you have a chance, you’ve got to score if I want to play that type of hockey.
Flyers right wing Travis Konecny was one of the players who was too loose with the puck on Monday night.
“We’re giving up turnovers, but we’re not scoring. … I’m a big believer in that, that if you’re going to play risky, you better score, and our guys aren’t scoring, so you’ve got to tighten it up.”
Across the whole season, the Flyers are one of the NHL’s best teams when it comes to limiting giveaways with the fifth fewest (639). However, across the last two games against the Lightning, they have 33 giveaways. Those 33 are the sixth-highest total in the NHL during that two-game span, with 24 teams playing twice.
It’s a trend that needs to be quashed.
3. Special teams need to step up
Maybe it’s something in the water? Because no matter what — new personnel, new coaches — the Flyers’ power play is bad, and it may have come to a head Monday when they had two power plays and didn’t put a single shot on goal. In fact, they iced the puck once.
Although the power play has been an ongoing issue since before the John Tortorella era — and it is now at 15.3%, tied with the New York Islanders for 30th in the NHL — the problem is that the once steady penalty kill is matching in futility. After going 2-for-2 with kills on Saturday, it went 2-for-4 on Monday and is just 9-for-16 (56.3%) since New Year’s Eve, which ranks 31st. Overall, it is at 79.9% and ranked 14th in the NHL.
“I don’t know. It’s tough to say right after a game like this,” Sean Couturier said when asked where he sees the penalty kill now. “Obviously, it’s not good enough.”
Special teams can make or break teams, and if the Flyers, who are precariously hanging on to third in the Metropolitan Division, want to stay there, the penalty kill and the power play need to step up.
“Yeah, that’s something we have to improve on, no doubt about it. We had some looks on the power play, so it wasn’t all that bad, but we’ve got to bear down, and they’ve got a lethal power play themselves,” Christian Dvorak said. “And you know, it was a big part of the game for them. And, you know, made a huge difference. So we’ll have to do better.”
After being one of the NHL’s best teams following a loss — 9-1-2 after losing in regulation and 13-2-5 following any loss — the Flyers have now lost two straight in regulation for the second time this season. The last time that happened was in November.
Following Saturday’s 7-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning, they were handed a 5-1 defeat by the same squad, both at the Xfinity Mobile Arena.
The Flyers have now lost three straight, including the 2-1 overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday. It also matches the longest losing streak of the season, set in mid-December.
Once again, the Lightning took an early 1-0 lead. This time, it was Pontus Holmberg beating Dan Vladař on a bouncing puck. The Flyers stepped up in the neutral zone, something they struggled with on Saturday, but Tampa Bay regained control, and once they got the puck in the Flyers’ end, they pinned them deep.
Eventually, the Lightning’s Zemgus Girgensons got the puck in the right circle and put it toward the front of the net with Holmberg and Travis Sanheim battling. The puck bounced around, and after Holmberg’s shot was initially blocked by Sanheim, his second attempt beat Vladař.
Just 33 seconds into the second period, Jake Guentzel made it 2-0 Tampa Bay with his 20th of the season. Off the opening faceoff, the Lightning dumped the puck in, and the Flyers seemed to be OK as they worked it around the boards.
Flyers goaltender Dan Vladar (right) and Cam York sit on the ice after Tampa Bay Lightning center Brayden Point (center) scored a second period power play goal on Monday. Point was injured hurt on the play.
But Trevor Zegras was double-teamed by Anthony Cirelli and Guentzel and lost the puck. Guentzel, who is playing for USA Hockey at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics, got the puck above the left circle and fired it past a screened Vladař.
The Lightning took a 3-0 lead on a power-play goal by Brayden Point in front. On the play, Point got his own rebound but was injured in the process as his right leg seemed to get twisted with Cam York. Named to Canada’s Olympic team, Point dropped his gloves immediately and grabbed his right knee before being helped off the ice.
Before the goal, Darren Raddysh’s stick seemed to hook Sean Couturier up high in the Lightning’s zone and could have been called.
The Flyers had some chances early on, notably Owen Tippett driving down the left boards, past Maxwell Crozier, and setting up Couturier for a shot that rang off the pipe when they were trailing 1-0. Rodrigo Ābols was also robbed when it was 2-0, when a point shot by Emil Andrae went off the end boards to him in front, and he had two good whacks at the puck.
Down 3-0, the Flyers started to turn it up and got on the board during four-on-four action.
After Vladař made a save on Raddysh off his mask, Christian Dvorak got the puck and headed up ice on a two-on-one with Nick Seeler. Dvorak kept the puck and sent a snapshot past goalie Jonas Johansson. It was Dvorak’s 10th of the year and extended his point streak to four games (one goal, three assists).
Philly had chances to cut further into the lead, especially with a delayed penalty called on Lightning defenseman Erik Černák. The Flyers had a six-on-five and had five shot attempts, including shots by Carl Grundström, who missed practice on Sunday due to illness, and Rasmus Ristolainen.
But the power play struggled and went 0-for-2 with two shot attempts, zero shots on goal, and an icing call.
Tampa Bay added another goal with 31 seconds left in the middle frame on a goal by Brandon Hagel, and Nikita Kucherov had an empty-net goal in the third period.
Breakaways
Forward Travis Konecny returned after missing Saturday’s game with an upper-body injury and after leaving Sunday’s practice with a lower-body injury. He had five shot attempts, including a chance in the second period down the left side, across 14 minutes, 21 seconds of ice time. The alternate captain also had 14 penalty minutes, with a 10-minute misconduct for abuse of an official. … Nikita Grebenkin and Ābols also dropped the gloves. … The Flyers allowed two power-play goals in four opportunities for Tampa Bay. … Point left the game with a lower-body injury. … Vladař allowed four goals on 25 shots.
Up next
The Flyers hit the road for two games in two nights, playing the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday (7:30 p.m., TNT, truTV, HBO Max) and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday (7 p.m., ESPN).
